Attachments
by Craig Wesson
Summary: Welkin clashes with the militia's newest squad leader and is forced to confront the dangers of his relationship with Alicia during wartime.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is my first work of fanfiction. Thank you for reading and please feel free to leave a comment, good or bad.

This story doesn't take place at any particular time in the game, but I do add three new characters, Rick Carson, Iosef (Josef) Denisuk and Nikita Petrov.

Disclaimer: I do not own Valkyria Chronicles.

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**Chapter One**

The door to Eleanor Varrot's office crashed open, grabbing everyone's attention. Lieutenant Welkin Gunther spun around to the door to see what could have been the most robust looking officer in the Gallian army.

"Okay," the man stated, "I've banged on five other doors and interrupted five other meetings, please tell me this is Captain Varrot's office."

A surprised Eleanor struggled to answer; "Um, ah, yes, yes it is…" she trailed off like she didn't know what to say next.

Both she and Faldio could only stare, which prompted the man to deliver a crisp salute and an introduction.

"Oh, Lieutenant Rick Carson, I believed you asked for me ma'am."

"Ah, yes!" Exclaimed the Captain as she motioned, "Come on in, please have a seat."

Welkin returned himself to a more comfortable position in his seat, Captain Varrot said that she was wanted to talk to him and Faldio but needed to wait for one other officer. Obviously this was him. As Rick made his way into a chair, Eleanor explained, "This is Lieutenant Rick Carson, squad 4's new squad leader."

Rick kindly shook Fadio's hand first, then Welkin's. The shake hurt Welkin's hand, which wasn't surprising considering the muscle hidden beneath his grayish blue Gallian uniform.

"Welkin Gunther right?" he asked from under a head of dirty blonde hair.

"Yes, nice to meet you." Welkin would have looked happier but the mention of squad 4 was bringing back some bad memories. A few weeks ago it was nearly wiped out in an Imperial offensive. They lost 6 people and their former squad leader, someone Welkin knew, was killed by a sniper.

Eleanor continued, "As you already know, squad 4 is…well, it needs to be rebuilt." At least she was polite enough to choose tasteful words. "Mr. Carson comes highly recommended to me from the regular army."

Welkin didn't believe it, did she say regular army?

"Regular army?" asked Faldio.

"Yes." Said Rick, "59th division, ever heard of us?"

With a frown Faldio voiced his suspicion to Captain Varrot, "Okay, I guess I'll be upfront about this, why in the world would the regular army send us one of their officers?"

"We're in desperate need to experienced soldiers." She explained, "The militia had no other place to turn. That actually brings me to the next topic gentlemen, force re-structuring."

Welkin raised an eyebrow, that didn't sound good. Eleanor leaned forward a little, avoiding eye contact with Welkin and Faldio.

"…Due to recent losses I must ask that squads 1 and 7 surrender able soldiers to newer squads. Faldio, I must ask for 3 of your men. From you Welkin, I'm afraid I'll need a list of 5."

Welkin's heart skipped a beat, immediately in his mind he began pulling the names of soldiers he couldn't give up, Rosie, Largo, and most importantly, Alicia. Captain Varrot continued explaining why her request was valid but Welkin nodded off, thinking of Alicia made him feel like he was forgetting something important, something he had to do.

"…Lieutenant."

Welkin came back to reality, "What? Yes?"

"Do you understand?" Eleanor spoke like it was the second time she was asking the question.

"Ah, yes ma'am."

"Good. Now I can tell you the good news. We got a massive group of new recruits this morning. Because this restructuring hurts you men the most, I'm letting you have first dibs."

"Sounds good ma'am." Said Rick.

Welkin found it hard to agree, the chemistry within a squad was delicate, even the slightest changes could have devastating effects on moral, and Rick was being forced to build one from scratch. It was not a task for the light hearted; Welkin remembered how hard it was for him to assemble the squad he had now.

Well, it didn't matter; these were captain Varrot's orders. Adjusting the glasses on her nose, she concluded the meeting, "Dismissed."

-

The Jeep Faldio had drove to he meeting splashed through a puddle going down the narrow roads of Randgriz's military base. Along for the ride was Rick, sitting in the back totally perplexed as to why he wasn't better known, "Come on, think hard, the 59th, faster division in the whole damn army."

No reaction from Faldio or Welkin.

"Come on! We can outmaneuver anything in Maximilian's arsenal."

"Would you just tell us why you're here?" asked Welkin rather forcefully. He didn't want to be so aggressive but if he didn't say anything he knew Faldio would just fume in silence the whole ride, "The regular army hates us and the militia hates the regular army."

Rick sat back as the jeep bounced along the road, "Look, I wanted to stay off the topic. As far as I know, the higher ups got word that the militia was out of experienced officers, so they sent me and a few others to try and plug the holes. That's all I know, I swear."

"Ever worked with militia before?" asked Faldio with his eyes on the road.

"No, but I think I'll manage. I had a squad in the regular army too."

Faldio chuckled a little and smiled, "Oh I'm sorry to tell you this man, but running a squad here is a little different from that."

"You think so?"

Welkin waited for a calm in the bumpy road to divert the conversation. If he didn't Faldio would just keep arguing. "So how many engagements have you fought in? If you don't mind me asking that is."

With a dark look, Rick responded vaguely, "…A lot."

Gradually, Faldio led the jeep off the road and into a small patch of gravel beside one of the militia's barracks. Putting the vehicle into park he announced,

"Alright gentlemen, please watch your step exiting the vehicle and thank you for choosing Landzaat Taxi Service."

Welkin plopped his boots into the gravel and looked up at the looming structure. The other two did likewise.

"How long do you think this will take?" asked Faldio out loud.

Welkin smiled, "It can't take that long. I mean, how many recruits could there be? Right?"

-

Welkin felt like he needed to bite his tongue off, five hours since they arrived and still they were sorting through mountains of personnel files. The second floor of the barracks wasn't in use so the three of them grabbed a big table and began the tedious task of selecting new squad members. It was nightfall, and there was still a pile of personnel files yet to be looked at.

Welkin knew his method was the least efficient, taking each file individually and reading everything. It was slow but to Welkin, soldiers were people, he felt he needed to get to know them a little. Faldio had a stack of sure-fire hits, maybes and flat out rejections. By the dim light of the table's only oil lamp, he could see that his once styled hair was matted to his face with sweat. Anyone would be tired doing what they were doing.

Rick was the only one not exhausted. He barely even looked at the files, after two seconds he'd either toss it into one pile or another. For curiosity sake Welkin asked to see the larger of his two piles, the rejections. He was amazed to find only women and men under the age of eighteen in it.

The young tanker sat back and rubbed his eyes, musing in the process, "You know, fish don't sleep at all, if they don't stop moving they'll die.'

"Welkin!" boomed Faldio while stabbing a finger at him, "No nature lessons tonight, please."

"I can't help it; I keep feeling like I've forgotten something."

Rick pushed a huge pile of files Faldio's way, "Well boys, I'd like to thank you for your hospitality."

"You're done already?" asked Faldio amazed.

"That I am, I'll read off the names." He picked through the few files in front of him, "Lets see, I'm taking Mayfield, Wordsworth, Kissinger, Wavy, Inglebard, Salinger and Regard."

"Got something against lancers?" asked Faldio.

"Only their speed…." A yawn interrupted Rick's sentence, "Ugh, I need to find a place to sleep. Thanks again though."

Welkin nodded with half a mind, he leaned back with is hands behind his head still wondering what he had forgotten. Once he heard the door close, Faldio snapped at Welkin, "For the love of god man, save yourself the trouble. Whatever you forgot it's too late to do anything now."

Welkin nodded and returned to the files he was charged with sorting through. It hit him like a two-hundred pound block of obvious, "Alicia! Oh my God!" Welkin grabbed his hair, "I was supposed to meet her tonight!"

Faldio showed little concern, "…Well oops."

Welkin didn't find the remark amusing at all, he quickly gathered up as many files as he could and made for the door. It was a ten minute trip to the Mess Hall; if he ran he could make it in five.

-

Because of all the trees, the Kloden Wildwood was unbelievably dark at night, even the owls had trouble seeing in front of them. That said, the Imperial troops cutting down trees couldn't tell which way the trees were falling.

"Colonel Denisuk! Watch out!"

Iosef Denisuk turned around just in time to see a tree fall on top of him, pinning him into a shallow dip in the ground. Lying under a jumble of branches, he could here the muffled cries of panicked Imperial soldiers as they scrambled to get him out. Eventually, Iosef was able to free himself. Combing the pine needles of his long dark hair, his men struggled to explain, "Sorry sir, we thought you were somewhere else!"

All around him, the sweaty, dirt stained faces of Imperial soldier's repeated the same thing. Oh well, Josef wasn't going to get angry, not with all the work his men were doing.

"Colonel Denisuk!"

Iosef spied his second in command making his way towards him through the thick trees and grass.

"Don't worry Nikita." Said Iosef cracking his neck, "The men saved me from the big bad tree."

Captain Nikita Petrov wasn't in the mood for humor. Even through the darkness he could see the frown on his long face.

"Colonel I think we should stop for tonight."

Iosef looked around. No matter how hard they worked it never looked like they made any progress clearing the forest. Setting up a new supply depot would take longer than he originally thought.

"Sounds good I guess." As usual, there was absolutely no spirit in his voice. He couldn't help it; he wasn't a soldier, just the son of politician.

Nikita sighed and adopted a more caring complexion, after all, he more than anyone knew about Iosef's disposition, "If you don't mind though, may I have a word?"

Iosef scratched the back of his head nervously, "Um, okay."

Passing by hundreds of tired Imperial soldiers, Nikita made his thoughts known, "No matter how much we work we still can't clear a large enough plot of land to use as a base."

Iosef glanced down at his chest, he had his black uniform shirt open and the gray undershirt he had on was soaked in sweat, "Well it doesn't matter if we're behind schedule, the Gallians wouldn't even think of fighting us here."

"That brings me to my next point." Said Nikita, "Our picket lines can't see two feet in front of them, and that's in daylight. If we don't cut down some trees for them we won't be able to even see a Gallian offensive."

Iosef found his tent. He sighed, "Emperor Maximilian's armies can plow though almost any country on this side of Eurpoa. But put a few trees in front of us…"

"Don't think about it." Said Nikita with a scowl, "Just get some sleep and try and show some confidence tomorrow."

With that, Iosef's best officer departed, cape flowing about his stride. Confidence huh? Iosef ducked into his tent and pulled out an empty rifle.

"I'll show you confidence." Calling on all his skill in military drill, he began to twirl the gun. It flew out of his hands within moments.

-

The Mess Hall closed a long time ago but Alicia told Welkin to meet her there. Because she spent all her spare time in the kitchen, she had special access. Tonight was supposed to be their much needed alone time but due to Captain Varrot's unexpected orders, Welkin forgot all about it.

"Alicia!" Welkin shouted while banging on the locked Mess Hall doors. Through the door windows he could tell all the lights were still on, it wasn't too late! Alicia was still there!

"Alicia! I'm sorry! I'm sorry I'm late!" Welkin banged on the doors a little more. Suddenly, a very frustrated Alicia popped into the door window, "What do you want?" she said in a monotone.

"Alicia, I know I'm late but…"

"Restaurant's closed, go home." And just like that Alicia disappeared from the window.

"No! Alicia, you don't understand, Captain Varrot had to see me and then one thing lead to another and…"

Alicia's angry face popped back into the window. A second latter she drew the blinds. It looked like Welkin was going to have to sleep on an empty stomach tonight.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Valkyria Chronicles.

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**Chapter Two**

It was a hectic morning for Welkin, as well as everyone else. Faldio had literally ripped him out of bed; Captain Varrot wanted to talk to everyone early. Apparently, a small army of Imperials had taken up residence in the Kloden Wildwood and was proving to be too tempting a target for the militia to pass up. Welkin's entire company was moving out to lead the attack.

Welkin felt right at home amongst the foliage, but the rest of the company was getting tried from hours of marching. There was only one dirt path that tanks were able to travel on, and it was barely the width of the Edelwiess. Welkin sat in the tank's copula while studying the map he had. Using his best judgment, he stopped the Edelweiss, as well as the whole company behind him. To his left, maybe a mile through the thick foliage, the Imperial camp sat. Or at least, that's what Gallian intelligence said.

"Welkin!" The call through the young tanker for a loop; he didn't think Alicia would want to talk to him after last night. Using the Edelweiss's idler wheel she pulled herself onto the tank, "Please tell me this is the place."

"I'm pretty positive." He waved his map around, "Provided the map is accurate."

At the risk of holding up the assault, Welkin changed gears, "Look, I'm sorry about last night."

Alicia's eyes got as wide as planets; Welkin didn't realize how loud he had said that. He almost had the whole company's attention. Flustered, Alicia put her hands over Welkin's mouth, "What is the matter with you?!"

"Sorry, sorry."

Not wanting to overhear what the nearby soldiers were saying about the two of them, Welkin began a new conversation, "So how do you think we should proceed?"

Alicia pulled some brown hair out of her eyes and tried to see past the thick trees, "We'll need some nimble soldiers to make it through that mess. I don't mean to brag but I think this is a job for scouts only."

"Now we can only hope their defenses are weak. I don't think scouts are enough to dislodge a force this big."

Right after his last word, Welkin heard the hum of another vehicle. Small and light, it was able to squeeze up the side of the road right next to the Edelweiss. It was Rick's halftrack, a boxy looking cross between armored car and tank. Rick himself sat by its forward machine gun with Wavy, "I have a strategy, want to hear it?"

"Alright."

"Sometimes it's not how many soldiers you have; it's where you have them. This doesn't have to be an all out engagement, we hit them hard and fast and there's a chance we can route the whole army."

Alicia scratched her head, "So, how many squads do you think it'll take?"

"Only one." Said Rick confidently, "Mine."

"That's insane." Alicia blurted.

Wavy pushed his glasses up, "Sergeant, if I may. Lieutenant Carson is trained for offensives like this; even though we're scouts I believe we can hit them hard enough to induce a panic."

"Wait a second!" A very disheartened Vyse climbed out from the confines of the halftrack, "Scouts only? What gives?"

"I'll take Vyse and Cezary with me." Informed Rick, "Just in case things get hairy."

All eyes were on Welkin, it was his decision to make. There was no way he could maneuver the whole company through the forest, it'd be a nightmare.

"…Okay." He said, "But I want you to take Alicia with you, she's the best scout in the company."

Rick was visibly hesitant, judging by all the soldiers Rick had rejected, Welkin knew gender would be a problem for him.

"Yes sir." Said Rick after some thought, "I'm leaving the halftrack here, we'll enter the forest a few yards up, come on."

Alicia grabbed her rifle and hopped off the tank.

"Alicia."

Alicia looked up at Welkin. It was a look Welkin was glad to see, one that told him she really wasn't all that mad at him.

"…Be careful. Please."

Alicia displayed a smile that would bewitch any man's heart, "I promise."

-

Rick's orders were strict; every soldier was to be totally silent moving through the woods. They were close; they could hear the axes and saws of Imperial Soldiers, even a little chatter. Alicia watched Rick lead the way down the barrel of her rifle, there was a creek bed up ahead he wanted everyone to hold up in. .45 caliber pistol in one hand and a spare clip in the other, Rick motioned for everyone to quietly enter the creek.

There were six soldiers including Alicia, scouts only. Rick left Cezary and Vyse back a little, if things got dicey, they had someone to cover their retreat. Alicia slopped around in ankle deep mud and peered over the grass. She couldn't see too much, but that was where Noche came in. Rick crawled over to him.

"Alright, talk to me." He whispered.

Noche's gifted eyesight was a lifesaver, "I've got…four Gatling guns, assorted scouts and shock troopers, one lancer. That's all I can see."

Rick nodded and rolled over to Alicia, "We have to hit them all at once, make it look like an all out assault."

"What about that Lancer?" Alicia asked.

Rick smiled, "He needs to be the first to go. Think you can take him out?"

Alicia smiled inside; did he not know how good a shot she was? "Don't worry; he won't even see it coming."

Rick nodded and picked his target like everyone else; Alicia watched the bulky helmet of a lancer cross her sights. All they needed was the order. Rick snuck over the edge of the creek bed and took aim at an unsuspecting scout chatting with one of the machine gunners. He shot him twice in the chest.

-

The sound of gunfire was enough to jostle any man from his sleep. Colonel Iosef Denisuk came barreling out of his tent, loading his ZM Kar rifle in the process, "What's going on?!" he shouted to no one in particular.

Men were running around without direction, all asking each other where the fight was. Half of them still weren't dressed or frantically searching for a weapon. Charging through the chaos was Nikita, perfectly dressed as always, "Colonel Denisuk! It's Gallian militia!"

Iosef couldn't believe it, was his army that important? All they were doing was setting up a supply base. This was bad, very bad, Iosef was far from a combat leader, he didn't know how to respond.

"Colonel! Your orders!" said Nikita standing in the middle of a flurry of soldiers. Iosef began to hyperventilate, it was too much pressure!

"Fall back! Evacuate the camp! Radio Field Marshal Gaider's artillery; tell him to blanket this whole position with smoke!"

"Colonel, with all due respect I think we should engage them! At least let me take a platoon and…"

"No! Evacuate the camp; I'm not fighting in this God forsaken jungle!"

Nikita swore and spun around, echoing Iosef's orders. The Colonel brushed his long hair away from his face and stared out into the forest where his besieged picket lines sat. He was no combat leader, and he wasn't going to kill all his men trying to be one.

Still, his men were out in the forest somewhere, fighting for their lives. Iosef looked back at his chaotic camp and at Nikita barking orders. With courage he didn't think he had, Iosef shouldered his rifle and headed for the picket lines.

It was a longer trip than he thought, and by the time he reached the first machine gun nest, all he found was a pair of corpses. Where on earth were the Gallian's firing from? Only scouts could engage at such a distance, but who in the world would us scouts to spearhead an attack?

The ground vibrated beneath Iosef's boots, the smoke had landed.

"Damn it." He murmured as he watched gray clouds envelope his position.

The firing stopped immediately as expected. That was good; Nikita had all the time in the world to evacuate the camp now.

A distant voice caused him to drop to the ground and make like a dead body. It was a Gallian, he had been spotted.

"…Lieutenant Carson! Rick!"

Iosef was perplexed, it almost sounded like a…girl. He heard her stumble closer and closer, tripping over things as she went. Not only had the smoke managed to stall the Gallian offensive, it managed to separate their soldiers from one another. She was getting closer; if Iosef didn't react she might find him and shoot him. Clutching his rifle and his courage, he jumped up and aimed.

She was three feet in front of him, brown hair tied with a red handkerchief. Iosef had her by complete surprise, but when he pulled the trigger of his gun, all he heard was a click.

"What the hell?" He began to bang the side of it, still nothing. He was done for, the girl before him swung her rifle up and pulled the trigger…but her gun jammed too.

"What the?" she squeaked, "Stupid thing!" It would have been very funny if it wasn't so serious, the first one to un-jam their gun would live.

A shadowy fist hit the girl hard in the back of the head. Iosef watched in relief as she collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"Colonel Denisuk."

It was Nikita who had saved him. He waved the smoke away from his face so Iosef could see him, "Are you alright?"

Iosef breathed a huge sigh of relief and fell onto his back side, being so close to death sapped his energy, "T-Thank you Nikita…"

Iosef's crow-faced second in command eyed the unconscious girl at his feet. Iosef did likewise, "I was just…worried about the picket lines. I-I thought she had me."

Nikita said nothing.

"…So ah, what now?"

Nikita looked him right in the eye; it was a look Iosef didn't like seeing, "Get her up; we're taking her with us."

-

Welkin drummed his fingers on the top of the Edelweiss's turret. It was tiring just looking at the mess before him. No, mess wasn't a strong enough word, it was complete and utter pandemonium!

Gallian soldiers as far as the eye could see, up the narrow Kloden path, down the path, surrounding his tank on all sides. Once Welkin told Captain Varrot about the success of Rick's squad, two other companies wanted a piece of the action. The only problem was that the road Welkin was on could barely support one company, let alone three. Chaos consumed the entire army as man and machine tried to move past one another, trying to figure out where the fight was.

Welkin leaned on his elbow and sighed, so much for running the enemy down. He'd be lucky if he could get the Edelweiss home by dark.

"…Edy!" he shouted to the girl blocking his view, "Get off my tank!"

Welkin's new recruit had taken position on the front of the tank. It was no use trying to talk to her; the girl wouldn't pass up an opportunity to be in the spot light.

"Welkin! Welkin!"

Welkin looked to his left, it was Rick. He was plowing his way through the mess of confused soldiers, an empty pistol in his hands. He reached the Gallian tank commander but accidently kicked Dallas Wyatt, who was working on a broken tread on the Edelweiss.

"Ow! Watch it!" she shouted.

"Sorry miss, Welkin! Can you believe it? It's was almost like they wanted to run!"

"Are you sure it's not a trick?!" shouted Welkin over the chatter, "Are you sure they aren't planning a counter-offensive?!"

Rick's face was glowing like a little boy's, for such a disciplined officer he sure knew how to celebrate a victory, "Positive! I've been talking to the other company CO's, they all say the same thing, every Imperial in Kloden is hightailing it back home!"

"Geez, either they weren't a fighting force or they had one heck of a jumpy commander."

"Either way it's all over, no casualties."

With that being said, Rick underlined his satisfaction by picking Dallas up and kissing her right on the mouth. Welkin couldn't believe it, Rick came off so unfeeling most of the time but it looked like he did have a human side. Dallas pulled away from Rick's embrace and ran away crying, "Gross!"

"…Well anyway."

"Where's Alicia?" asked Welkin. Squad 4's peculiar Lieutenant motioned to the chaos around him, "Somewhere in this mess I guess, after they started launching smoke I ordered everyone to pull back and rally on my half-track. Don't worry Lieutenant, you'll get her back."

Welkin returned his attention to all the soldiers sprawled out down the road. Life in the sate of nature was a chaos ten times worse than what he was watching, nothing ever went as planned. Welkin felt his instincts tug on his mind, something told him Alicia wasn't alright.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Valkyria Chronicles

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**Chapter Three**

The only road out of Kloden was the same road Iosef's army used to get in. An endless stream of 3 ton troop trucks and tanks rumbled through the dirt heading back to Imperial territory. Because the evacuation happened so quickly, Iosef wasn't sure which truck he was in, but it had to be somewhere in the middle of the column. Inside it's empty confines, Nikita paced in little circles.

"…I want to turn the army around in a few miles Colonel."

Iosef looked up from his seat, "You want to go on the offensive?"

"Yes. Sir…the Gallians got the jump on us, that I don't deny, but I know the men and I know their capabilities. We should fight."

The truck hit a rough bump, nearly knocking Iosef out of his seat. "We don't know how many we're up against Captain; we don't know the ground either."

Nikita gave Iosef that cold, grim look that he always hated seeing, "We have the answer to both those problems Colonel."

He was referring to the girl. Nikita was right; they had to figure out what she knew. Getting the information, however, was going to be a topic of debate. Slapping his thighs, Iosef got up and walked right past his second in command. The trucks were moving so slowly Iosef was able to hop off the back and land comfortably on his feet. He let five more of the clumsy vehicles pass him by before he grabbed onto the sixth one's side and hauled himself into the back.

There she was, sleeping peacefully on the floor. Iosef motioned to the two soldiers guarding her, "Take a hike, I've got this."

The men did as told and hopped off the back of the truck much like Iosef did. He knew Nikita wouldn't wait long, but the young Colonel didn't care. He took a seat and let the girl sleep a little longer.

_

"What do you mean you can't find her?!" Welkin roared. The sun was going down on Kloden but the militia's situation hadn't improved, they had successfully re-directed one company back to Randgriz but the Edelweiss was still stuck in a swamp of soldiers and equipment.

Standing on the front of his tank with his arms crossed, Lieutenant Rick Carson frowned, "What I mean, Mr. Gunther, is that I've checked with every squad leader, every officer and I still can't locate her."

Welkin punched the top of the turret, he knew something wasn't right!

"Have you checked the forest?!" he asked desperately.

Rick looked to his side, deferring the question to Wavy, "I took a few people back into the forest once the smoke dissipated. We retraced all our steps but couldn't find her."

That was not the response Welkin was looking for. Hell, if it came down to it he'd risk running over his own men to take the Edelweiss into the woods.

"Sir." Rick began, "I'm afraid we have to assume that sergeant Melchoitt is KIA."

Welkin's emotions reached boiling point when he heard that. I couldn't be true, she couldn't be dead. He slammed his fist down again,

"No!" he screamed hysterically, "She's alive! She's alive and we have to find her!"

"Lieutenant!" Rick snarled, "Get a hold of yourself! There's nothing you can do! Now I apologize for failing to bring her back to you, but you've got the rest of the company to think about right now."

"How the hell can you say that?!"

Rick backed off for a second in the face of Welkin's furry and dismissed Wavy. Good, now Welkin could go at him one on one.

"Let me tell you something Rick, I don't see my soldiers like you do."

"Really now?" barked Rick showing his teeth, "Okay then asshole, how do I see my soldiers?"

"I was there when we were picking out new recruits, those weren't even people to you, just collections of names and ranks!"

"That's because they are Lieutenant Gunther!"

Welkin couldn't believe what he was hearing; the regular army really was an abomination. Rick continued to advertise his cold blooded view of the world, "Look, I don't know exactly what kind of personal attachment you had with this girl, but you made a mistake making her this important to you."

Rick stopped to catch his breath, leaning on the Edelweiss's gun-barrel.

"Look…it's easier to see names and ranks get killed then it is friends. Believe me I know."

"Don't take the moral high ground with me," Snapped Welkin, "I've been in this war just as long as you and I've learned something very important from it. War is the most terrible thing humans can face, but to just accept the horror of it means giving up all hope."

Rick burst into a kind of raspy laugher upon hearing that, "Really now? To accept the horror of war is to give up all hope huh? Let me ask you something Welkin, is Alicia the only soldier you have such a strong attachment to?"

"I care for all of my soldiers Rick, not just Alicia."

"Good for you. What happens when the next one gets killed huh? Or the next one? Or the next one? You'll blow your head off before the war is over."

Welkin wasn't listening; he ducked into the Edelweiss's turret and emerged with a Gallian rifle.

"What the hell are you doing?" asked Rick.

Welkin pulled the bolt back on his rifle and let it fly forward, loading a round, "I'm going into that forest."

"What?"

Welkin climbed out of the copula, not once second-guessing himself. He did, however, leave Rick with one last statement, "And for your future reference Lieutenant, Alicia isn't simply personal attachment of mine. She's the love of my life."

With that, Welkin hoped off the Edelweiss.

He was greeted by three soldiers from Rick's squad, Wavy, Noche and Vyse. They had all overheard his argument with Rick.

"Hey, Welkin?" Vyse started nervously, "We ah, heard what you said man and…we want to help find Alicia too."

Welkin didn't know what to say, they had nothing to gain, why would they put their lives on the line? Wavy explained, "I have a family back home Welkin. When I…if I get home again I want to be someone my kids will recognize."

After Welkin realized that they agreed with everything he had said to Rick, he began to smile. Noche, of course, had to ruin the warm mood, "I'm just going because of Alicia, you're not the only one who loves her buddy."

And just like that Welkin had three soldiers, three friends who were willing to follow him. All that was left was a certain officer's consent. Rick was perched on the top of the Edelweiss suffering from a serious conflict in judgment. He took forever to make up his mind.

"…Alright, fine!" he said throwing hands up, "Make me the bad guy why don't you. Come on now, we should get moving."

_

Alicia's head was throbbing when she finally came too. She could feel her body bouncing around on the floor of a troop truck, but when she opened her eyes, she realized it wasn't one the Gallians used.

There was a lone man with long dark hair and an Imperial uniform sitting towards the end of the truck. He was facing the other way so there was a good chance he didn't know she was awake. Alicia did her best to remember what had happened, there was the attack, then the smoke and then…wait a second, long dark hair? This was the guy she was almost killed by!

Her captor turned to face her and seeing that she was finally awake, made it a point to introduce himself, "Um, hello. I'm Colonel Iosef Denisuk, uh, of the 11th Imperial Army."

Alicia shot to her feet and balled her fists, "Where am I? Why am I here?"

"Well to answer the first question, you're on a…" Iosef took a second to glance outside, "…on an incredibly slow convoy to Imperial territory. As for why, I think you already know that."

Alicia's heart skipped a beat, after the militia's surprise attack the Imperials were probably curious as to exactly how many men they were up against. The young Gallian sergeant wished she hadn't been present at the briefing.

"Look, all I want you to do is tell me what I'm up against, a company, a battalion, whatever. After that I promise I'll let you go."

Alicia maintained a less than cooperative complexion, "Well then." She began while taking a seat, "I guess this is going to be one boring trip." With that, Alicia put her arms behind her head and relaxed.

Iosef waited a couple minutes, "…Can I at least have your name?"

"Alicia."

"Well then Alicia." Iosef put his hands in his pockets and revealed a blunt truth, "There are men like me who see no harm in treating enemy combatants as human beings. Personally I can't think of anything worse than loosing my humanity to the horrors of war."

That line pierced Alicia's heart; if she closed her eyes she could almost picture Welkin saying the same thing.

"But there are other men, particularly in this army, that would have no problem tying you to a tree, stripping you naked and beating you senseless."

Swallowing hard, Alicia tried not to picture that scenario and lied, "That wouldn't make me talk."

Iosef took a seat opposite her, still trying to work the caring angle. Alicia made sure not to look at him.

"Want to know who I am? The son of a politician in the Imperial government, that's all. No military training, no weapons training, hell, I used to play house as a kid with the girls in my neighborhood."

"I worked at a bakery." Said Alicia, trying to lure Iosef into thinking they were the same, "But I've also been a member of my town watch since I was a girl."

"So, any boyfriends?"

Alicia didn't say a word, what kind of stupid question was that? Iosef prodded more, "Because as you already know I'm a softy, tell me the truth and I'll try harder to get you back home."

For a moment, Alicia's mind was betraying her. She had forgotten about Welkin, being a Gallian POW would mean she wouldn't see him or Bruhl for a very long time. Could she deal with that? Surely the fate of the Gallian militia was more important than him.

"Knew it." Said Iosef noticing her worry, "There is a guy isn't there?"

"Just leave me alone." She tried.

"What's his name? You only have to say his first."

"No, leave me alone." she re-iterated

Iosef sighed and leaned back, "Alright then. Hope he isn't Mr. Right though, because there's a good chance you won't be seeing him again."

Alicia kept her face to the side, trying to be as cold and enduring as possible. Even so, the lump in her throat was becoming unbearable.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Valkyria Chronicles.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

The way Welkin figured it; they had only an hour of light left before the darkness swallowed them whole. Welkin and the soldiers that had volunteered to help look for Alicia were milling about the remains of the Imperial camp. The young tanker himself was sitting on a tree stump, clutching a Gallian rifle with a very distinct gash in the stock. It was Alicia's rifle.

Worse case scenario, she was dead somewhere in the forest. Either that or she was captured and hauled away. Welkin looked up; Vyse was solemnly digging through piles of garbage, praying that he wouldn't find her body. Noche ducked in and out of tents doing the same. Poor Wavy was struggling to get the mud off his uniform. All three of them were trying there best but in the darkest recesses of Welkin's mind, he didn't think they would be able to find her.

Then the hum of a vehicle entered his ears. Looking up ahead, Welkin saw an Imperial Kubelwagon come bouncing towards him, headlights off. Rick guided the boxy thing to a smooth patch of earth and let it idle, "Lookie what I found."

Welkin grabbed Alicia's gun and followed everyone else towards Rick's looted prize.

"Found it parked behind some bushes, they must have left it behind." He peeked out from the drivers seat and checked the vehicle over, "Looks in good shape too."

Wavy tucked his hand under his arm so he wouldn't have to look at his dirty hand, "Would it be safe to assume that your plan includes following the entire Imperial Army?"

"Are you kidding?" asked Welkin, "If they spot us we'll be blown to pieces."

Rick spelled it out for him, "Well when I say follow, my dear Welkin, I mean in secret."

"And do what?" asked Noche.

"Aw, I think we all know Noche!" exclaimed Vyse waving his machine gun around.

"Suicide." Said Wavy.

"Alright, shut up, all y'all. We've searched the whole camp and haven't found a body so that means she was captured by the Imperials." Rick directed his next question at Welkin, "Now, this sergeant slash special attachment of yours, would you consider her to be a risk taker?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean if we started to shoot up the tail end of their army do you think she could use the confusion to try and escape?"

"Rick we don't have the numbers to do that."

"We have the forest," Said Rick, motioning to his surroundings, "There's only one narrow road out of this place. If we stop the army from moving she might be able to make a break for it."

Everyone took a moment to think about it. By now it was almost totally dark; crickets were the only things making noise in the entire forest.

"We're putting a lot of weight on her shoulders." Said Noche nervously.

"If she's too heavily guarded or doesn't know it's us, this whole plan is screwed." Commented Vyse.

"I still think it's worth a try." Said Welkin predictably, "I think there's a chance. Who still wants to give it a shot?"

There was no hesitation, everyone nodded as one.

"Okay then." Said Rick throwing the Kubelwagon into drive.

Welkin wasn't done yet, "However, I have one demand. I drive."

-

The slow moving truck Alicia was riding in came to a sudden and abrupt halt, throwing her to the floor. Iosef moved in quickly, "You okay?"

"Get your hands off me!" screeched Alicia helping herself up. Iosef backed off and popped his head out the back of the truck, exchanging a few harsh words with the driver. Alicia climbed back into her seat, whipping her eyes and hoping the Imperial Colonel didn't notice. Every yard they crept closer to Imperial territory the tighter her chest got. Every mile they went was one mile farther away from everything she ever knew, farther away from Welkin.

"_This is insane!_" she whispered to herself, "_What's wrong with you? You knew this was a risk when you enlisted, get a hold of yourself!_"

Welkin, Welkin, Welkin, it was a name she couldn't get out of her head. She began to think, if she did tell the Imperial Colonel how many men the militia had, would they be able to fend off an attack? After all, the Gallians knew Kloden better than any other nation. But how many lives would be lost in such an engagement? Was it all worth it if she could see her friends again? If she could see Welkin again?

Iosef pulled himself back into the dark truck, "One problem after another." He mumbled to himself, "Well Miss Alicia, the third truck ahead of us broke an axel."

Alicia didn't look at him, her eyes were swelling up again, "Um…does that mean we're stuck for the night?"

"Yep, stuck with our flies down too, the trucks ahead of us had eighty percent of this army's soldiers. Behind us are all auxiliary troops, field kitchen equipment and clothes."

Iosef went silent for some reason. Alicia cursed him, how could he tell she was such a mess? He inched a little closer to her, seeing all the way through her.

"…Look. This road is narrow but I think I can spin a truck around on it. Tell me what I need to know and I can take you back to the Gallian lines."

"Leave me alone." Said Alicia near breaking point.

"Alicia, I need an answer now."

"Shut up!" she yelled.

"Alicia…"

"I said shut up!" Alicia sprung to her feet and produced a small pistol hidden inside her uniform. She aimed for his head, unable to hold in her tears any longer. Iosef was visibly terrified and began sweating on the spot. Still, despite his apparent fear he continued to play mind games, "Want to know why you still have that thing? It's because I knew you didn't want to use it, that's why I overlooked it searching you."

Alicia moved her pistol's barrel closer to his head, "How dare you talk to me like a friend," she hissed, "I'm not telling you anything, so leave me alone!"

Iosef swallowed hard, "…Alright, you've made your point. Put the gun away before someone sees you."

Alicia reluctantly complied, secretly preferring Iosef over a mob of angry Imperial soldiers. She sat as far away from him as she could, faced the wall of the truck and tried to keep control of herself. She wasn't sure how much longer she could keep it up.

-

Welkin drove the Kubelwagon as fast and as quietly as he could down the narrow Kloden dirt road. Fresh tire tracks were tell-tale this was the road the Imperials used to leave Kloden after the attack. Sitting shot gun was Rick, his large muscular body dwarfing Welkin's. Behind them was Noche and Wavy, Vyse was the one stuck hanging onto the back trunk. He didn't seem to mind, all he did was stare up at the starry sky.

Welkin's eyes were tired, with the lights off he could only see a mere inches down the road. Heaven have mercy on them if a bend came up.

"Hope she's worth it." Murmured Rick.

Welkin frowned, "Having second thoughts?"

Rick checked his pistol, pulling the slide back and letting it fly forward. His response was as gloomy as ever, "I'll let you know when we're done."

Noche tapped Welkin's shoulders, "_Slow down, slow down._" He whispered sharply. Welkin trusted Noche's eyesight and brought the car to a gradual stop. It was faint, but Welkin caught the noise of another idling vehicle. He strained his eyes to see what was ahead and gasped, he could see the dim lights of a 3 ton Imperial troop truck.

"Looks like we caught up with the ass-end of the army." Said Rick.

"Awesome." Said Vyse getting a better look, "So what's the plan?"

Welkin rubbed his chin, "The back ends of these trucks are all exposed, God knows if they're full of soldiers or not. We can maybe wipe out the first two or three if we move fast but that's about it."

"The Imperials wouldn't have stopped if they weren't having problems," Observed Rick, "Whatever the problem is it probably has everyone's attention. The timing doesn't get any better than this."

"We've got one shot at this, we swoop in a shoot up as much as we can, then fall back to the car or into the forest, they won't bother sending troops to hunt for a few militiamen."

"Sounds good to me." Said Rick, "Everyone okay with this?"

He didn't need to ask. The plan was far from full-proof though, most of it hinged on whether or not Alicia would understand what was happening. Welkin wanted to find her so badly, but that wasn't apart of the plan, he needed to keep that in mind.

Putting the Kubelwagon back into drive, he slowly advanced. Everyone's hearts began to beat as fast as the car's pistons, faster as the Imperial truck came into view. There were five imperials sitting in the back of the truck, they couldn't tell the difference between the idle of the truck and the car. Welkin floored it and Vyse leveled his gun. He hosed all five unsuspecting Imperials.

There was nothing quiet about Vyse or his gun, so everyone bailed out of the car and moved fast. Welkin pulled up his rifle and shot a panicked engineer trying to figure out what was going on. Then he and Rick proceeded up the left side of the first truck while Noche and Wavy moved around right. The truck drivers were unarmed, but Rick made sure to do away with them as well,

"I'm not in the mood to argue Welkin, anyone capable of pulling a trigger goes down."

A shock trooper was waiting for them behind the second truck, which thankfully only carried kitchen equipment. ZM MP blazing, the Imperial trooper forced Rick and Welkin to take cover.

A grenade went off, courtesy of Wavy and allowed the assault to continue. Rick shot ahead, shooting a scout coming down the road. Quickly changing clips he shot the driver of the second truck, "Come on! Faster!" he shouted.

Welkin ran past him and opened fire on the third truck, killing two of the three confused soldier's playing cards in the back. Noche nailed the third.

"Alicia!" cried Welkin, hoping she was nearby.

"Welkin look out!"

Welkin caught the noise of something whistling through the air. A lancer's rocket sped past his head, taking his garrison cap right off his head.

"Lancer!" shouted Rick. Welkin aimed his rifle at a Lancer standing by the fourth truck struggling to reload his lance. Welkin got him in the head.

"Alicia!" he shouted again. He knew that wasn't what he needed to be thinking about but that wasn't the case now. Alicia was the only word in his mind, she was close by, he just knew it.

"Welkin!" called Rick over the gunfire, "We're done! She's not getting the message!"

"No! She's here, I know she's here!"

"Damn it Welkin you're going to get everyone killed!"

Welkin didn't care, he sprang forward. The Imperial's were too confused and surprised to shoot at him as he ran by truck after truck. Occasionally he'd fire to get one out of his way, but made no effort to kill anyone else. He was going farther and farther behind enemy lines, Alicia's name on his lips the entire way. Eventually, his blind charge ended in the worst possible way.

At least a dozen Imperial surrounded him, leveling their guns. Welkin came to a screeching halt wondering just how deep into the Imperial column he had gone. Well that didn't matter now, he was caught, but he wasn't alone, Alicia was with him.

Standing on the back of a truck was a long haired Imperial Colonel. He had one arm around Alicia's neck the other holding a Gallian pistol to her head, "Drop the gun." He ordered.

Welkin did as told and put his hands behind his head. He looked at Alicia; the poor girl looked like she was a mess.

"Now then," Said the Imperial Colonel, "Care to tell me why the hell you're killing my men? Is it all for her?"

Welkin snarled as the Colonel squeezed Alicia's neck harder, "Yes! Let her go you bastard!"

The Colonel stared at him without answering. It perplexed Welkin, he was expecting him to walk all over his request. Instead, he got the attention of one of his men.

"Sergeant! Captain Petrov, did he leave with the other half of the convoy?"

"Yes sir, he said he'd wait for you ahead."

The same sergeant motioned towards Welkin, "Want to take him with us?"

"No, that wont be necessary." Said the Colonel surprising even his own men.

"Wha…why sir?"

"The girl has already told me everything I need to know about the Gallian militia. She wasn't that hard to break."

Welkin wanted to tear loose, "What the hell did you do to her?!"

The Colonel threw Alicia off the truck, letting her land face first in the dirt. Naturally, Welkin rushed to her aid under the watchful gaze of a dozen guns. Crossing his arms, the nameless Colonel vocalized his wishes, "Go home Gallian, and take her with you. I'm sick and tired of her crying."

With a wave of his hand he ordered his men to lower their weapons. Why he was letting them go wasn't something Welkin wanted to know. He briskly began to walk away holding Alicia's hand, a hand he hoped he'd never have to let go of again.

-

It was a quiet and cramped trip back to the Edelweiss. Both the tank and Rick's half-track were sitting alone on the empty dirt road Welkin remembered to be packed with soldiers. The time was 4:00 am and all three companies had finally been re-routed to Randgriz.

Welkin pulled the Kubelwagon alongside the Edelweiss and Rick jumped out at once, "Come on!" he shouted enraged, "That whole damned Imperial army will be swinging back to hit us, we've gotta warn Captain Varrot."

"But…" tried Alicia. Rick spat at her, "Save it! This is all your fault for talking!"

"Hey back off! It's your fault she got captured!" yelled Noche. Rick was ready to bowl him over, "Pack your crap and get the hell out of my squad Wordsworth!"

The entire situation devolved into one big argument that left Wavy straining to keep Rick and Noche from pummeling each other. Before Welkin could get in, Alicia tried to say something but the roar of the argument drowned it out. After firing a few bullets into the sky, Vyse had everyone's attention, "Excuse me gentlemen, but I do believe the lady was talking."

"I didn't say anything!" Alicia insisted.

This surprised everyone, considering what the Imperial Colonel has said. Being the only one left in the car with her, Welkin was the first to ask, "But he…that's the reason he let you go wasn't it?"

"No, that wasn't the reason."

"Then why?"

Everyone's eyes were on Alicia but Welkin suspected she didn't have a perfect answer.

"I think…he felt sorry for me." She looked over at Welkin, "The way he talked he…sounded a lot like you."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Welkin thanked his lucky stars there was an Imperial officer out there that was trying to do some good despite all the fighting. Hopefully he wasn't alone, that would certainly promote a quicker end to the war.

"I feel so bad." Alicia lamented, "I wanted to tell him everything, I couldn't bear the thought of being away from everyone, being away from you Welkin."

Welkin smiled and patted her on the shoulder, "Don't worry, I nearly got everyone killed trying to save you. Not my brightest moment."

At that time Welkin was expecting a lecture from Rick but thanks to his fatigue and the time of day, he kept it short, "Well I was going to go on a rant but I think you two get it now." Rick looked around at everyone, "I think we all get it now, right?"

That they all did. Welkin looked into Alicia's eyes, knowing she understood as well. Their country was at war, and no matter how badly they wanted to ignore it, they couldn't. They had all the time in the world to be together…after the fighting was over.

* * *

Authors Note: Thanks for reading, I really mean it. I have a few other story ideas but I'd like to polish them a little more. This story was done just to get my feet wet but hopefully my writing will improve as time goes on.


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